Takeaways From Guardians Series Loss To The Yankees
Everything started off so well for the Cleveland Guardians after they opened up their series with the New York Yankees with a gutsy win. However, things went south from that point on as the Yankees took the next two games and the series victory.
After giving it some time to settle, these are some of the takeaways from this series.
Andres Gimenez Needs More At-Bats
This isn't a very original take, but Andres Gimenez needs to get more at-bats. Whether that means a simple swap with another player or completely blowing up the lineup and starting from scratch.
He's Clevelend's best and most consistent hitter right now and he's showing no signs of slowing down any time soon. Gimenez has started off this season with a .308 batting average and a .830 OPS. He also has five RBI and produced 14 hits in the first 13 games.
This kind of production can't get lost at the bottom of the lineup.
Will Brennan Silently Getting More Playing Time
Will Brennan joined this team out of Spring Training as a bench piece who Terry Francona hoped to use as his go-to pinch hitter. While that has been the case, Brennan has silently snuck into the everyday lineup.
He started each of the games against the Yankees and had a respectable series going two-for-eight while recording a sacrifice fly and a couple of walks as well. Brennan also showed off his arm in the outfield when he doubled up Aaron Judge at second base.
Baseball is all about playing who's hot and right now that's Brennan so it wouldn't be surprising to continue to see his playing time increase.
Guardians Pitching Has An Uphill Battle To Climb
The loss of Aaron Civale while simultaneously dealing with Triston McKenzie's lengthy absence was a massive blow for these Guardians.
Hunter Gaddis looked underwhelming after allowing eight runs in just 3.0 innings on Tuesday and Cal Qauntrill and Zach Plesac are each off to rocky starts. Peyton Battenfield did look solid in his debut against the Yankees, but now the hard part is repeating it.
Out of any team in MLB, I trust the Guardians to get through it with their track record of developing pitching, even as the season moves on. Pitching coach Carl Willis pointed out this is nothing the team hasn't had to deal with before.
Once this rotation is at full strength is arguably one of the best in the American League.
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Read More:
Peyton Battenfield's Impressive Debut Gives Guardians Hope As They Navigate Injuries
WATCH: Josh Naylor's Hilarious Reaction To Aaron Boone Being Ejected
Aaron Boone Ejected In Guardians-Yankees Series Finale
Guardians Offense Explodes Against Guardians, Tie Up Series
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